Because of their ability to move large amounts of material, conveyor belts have been long been used in industry such as for moving agricultural products, rocks and other mined materials and various manufactured products.
In many situations, the conveyor belts include a plurality of cleats that extend from the surface thereof in a spaced-apart configuration. The cleats enhance the amount of product that can be moved using the conveyor belt as compared to configurations that do not include cleats.
One area in which conveyor belts are extensively used is equipment for moving agricultural products because the conveyor belts minimize the potential damage to the agricultural products. In certain situations, it is desired for the conveyor belt to have a flat cross-section configuration.
In other situations, it is desired for the conveyor belt to pass through a cylindrical tube where the conveyor belt would have a curved cross-section configuration. One area in which it is desired to convey product using a cylindrical tube is with relatively light grains or other materials that are susceptible to being blown off of a conveyor having a flat cross-section configuration.
The rigidity of conventional cleats can present challenges associated with moving conveyor belts between flat and curved configurations. Various attempts have been made to increase the ability of the conveyor belts to move between the flat and curved configurations such as by forming the cleats in a plurality of sections.
Kaeb et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,646, discloses forming the conveyor belt cleats in a plurality of sections. Sides of the cleat sections are angled so that when the conveyor belt is moved to the curved configuration, the sides on adjacent cleats are adjacent to each other. Kaeb also discloses a cleat configuration where the adjacent cleats partially overlap each other when in the curved configuration.
Friesen, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2010/0326798, discloses a conveyor belt that is used in conjunction with a tube. The cleats are mounted in two row sets. Each row includes cleat sections mounted in a spaced-apart configuration. The cleat sections in the adjacent rows are offset from each other.
Neufeld et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,292,665, discloses a conveyor belt that is used in conjunction with a tube. Each of the cleats includes a plurality of cleat sections. The cleats are attached to the conveyor belt in a herringbone pattern so that the cleats are oriented at an angle with respect to the direction in which the conveyor belt moves.